Machine for forming plates.



N0. j. Paened 00L 30, |900.

R. E. HLBRK R. H. KING. Y

MCIHNE FUR FRPMNG PLATES.

(Application filed June 4, 1900.)

ATTURNEYS.

Patented Det. 30, |900.

R. G. HLBRDDK R. H. KWG.

MACHINE FUR FRWNG PLM'ES.

{Application led June 4, 1900,)

(No Model.)

lr/V/ TNESSES Patented om. so, 41900.

R. e. HoLnuoK L R. H. Kme.

MACHmE FOR FOBMING PLATES.

(Application filed June 4, 1900.)

3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

(No Modal.)

mop/vm.

' tened by the use of the least possible mech-y rails 4 5.

'UNtEp STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ROBERT G. HOLBROOK AND ROBERT I1. KING, F OSWEGO, NEW YORK.

MACHINE FOR FORMINQ PLATES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters atent No. 660,638. dated October 30, 1900.

Application filed Juno 4, 1900v Our invention relates to improvements in,

machines for forming plates, and is partielllarly applicable for use in the formation of wood or pulp platos, the object of this invettt-ion being speedily and simultaneously to compress, form, and dry a large number of such plates which have been previously tnoisanism; and to this end the invention consists in the construction, combination, and arrangement of the component parts of a machine for'the desired purpose, as hereinafter fully described, and pointed outin the claims.

In describing this invention reference is had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which like numerals indicate corresponding parts in all of the views. l

Figures 1 and 2 are respectively a top plan and a side elevation, partly broken away, of out-invention. Fig.3isasectionalviewtaken on line 3 3 of Fig. 2, showingr particularly the guide rails, the heating-chambers of one o t' the dies, and the conduit-s leading to and from said chamber. Fig. 4 is a top platt similar to Fig. 1, thc driving mechanism being omitted and the dies beingr shown in section and as moved toward each other. Fig. 5 is an enlarged sectional view taken on line 5 5 of Fig. 1. Figs. 6 and 7 are isometric views ot' one of the detached guide-rails and the removable section thereof.

The supporting-frame of our invention may be of any desired form, size, or construction, but preferably consists of separated upright standards l 2, a tie-bar 3, and guiderails 4 5. The standards 1 2 are usually provided With apertures 6 7 for receiving the opposite ends of the tie-bar 3 and the guide- 4 One of the standards, as 1, is formed with suitable bearings 8 9 for recoiving revoluble portions of a suitable driving mechanism, hereinafter described.

arial No. 18,987. lNo model.I

preferably pro- Y 5 5 ends of the tie-bar 3 engage the inner faces 6o of the standardsl 2 and, together with the' clamping-nuts 10, form convenient means of firmly secnrinet the standards to the tie-bar. The guideratls 4 5 are supported by the standards 1 2, sides of the tie-bar, and are arranged su bstantially parallel with each other and with said tie-bar, and are each provided with a lengthwise groove-12 13.,.also arranged Vparallel with each other, portionsof the movable dies 11, presently described. These guide=rails also serve as tiebars for uniting the standards and are each provided with reduced threaded ends passed through the apertures 7 in the standards and are engaged by suitable clamping means, as nuts 14. It is thus apparent that the standards 1 2, the tie-bat' 3, and the guiderails 4 5 form when assembled a rigid suppreferably-'on the opposite 65 Whiclhserve to receive and guide 7o porting-frame for the remaining parts of our 8o invention.

It is sometimes desirable to remove one of thedies Without disturbing the remaining dies, and for`this purpose we provide one of the guide-rails, tion 15, which forms one of the walls of the groove 12 and is detachably secured to the main portion of the guide-rail 4 by suitable clamping means, as threaded bolts 16, passed as 4, with a removable sec- 85- through apertures in said main portion and oo engage with threaded apertures formed in the removable section 15.

Although the above-described guide-rails for the movable dies are particularlysimple, durable, and efficient, that the same may be otherwise formed and supported and that either encor both tnay be provided with a retnovable section, it' desired, without departing from the spirit of this invention.

rlfhe movable dies 11, previously referred to, are supported one iu advance of the other upon theguide-rails4 5,havi ng portions thereof arranged within the grooves 12 13, and are it will be understood 95.

movable lengthwiseof the said rails a limited distance toward and away from each other for permitting the insertion between the dies of the wood or pulp blau ks and for com pressl drieal shell i7, havingA a heating-chamber 18,

branch passages lf), leading to and from the chamber 1S to the exterior of the shell, and oppositely-arranged arms 20, having tongues 21, arranged in the grooves l2 13,-sa'id tongues heiugelongated lengthwise of the grooves for holding the shell in a substantially upright position and guiding the dies in their movement along the guide-rails.'

Atty desired means may be employed for limitingr the movement of the'dies away from each other in order thatl said dies may be normally separated a substantially-nniform distance from each other for permitting the insertion of a number ot' wood or pulp blanks between the adjacent faces ot' the dies. This means preferably consists of a plurality of series of links 22, the links ot' one series being adapted to engage suitable shoulders, as bolts 23, secured to the top face of the arms ou one side of the shell t7, -and the links of the other series being arranged to engage similar shoulders, as bolts 23, secured to the `lower fac` of the arms at the opposite side of the Shelli?. I

The chamber 1S may be heated in any desired manner t'or heating the walls of the shell 17, and thereby drying the previouslymoistened wood or pulp, as plates, while said plates are being compressed and formed by lthe dies. y \Ve preferably use steam for this purpose and connect the several chambers with each other in such manner that the steam is admitted to tite chamber of one of .the end dies by a suitable conduit 24, is sucmunieatng with the chambers of the adja-v cent. dies, thereby connecting tite several chambers with each other and forming a oontinnous passage for the steam from the inletconduit. 2t through the several conduits 25 and chambers 1S tio the outlet-conduit 26.A

' When placing the wood or pulp blanks in position between the several dies, it is essential that some means be provided for centering said blanks with the dies. This means, as shown in the drawings, consists of separated su'bstantially-parallel bars 27, arranged beneath the dies in planes substantially patallel with the guide-mils t and equidistant on opposite sides of a vertical plane through the center of the dies and each preferably supported in suitable brackets 2b', secured to the inner faces o1' the standards l 2. -These bars are formed snbstantialy tlat, and in cross-section are arranged substantially radial with the cylindrical shell ot' the dies, with their upper faces disposed in close proximity to the lower faces of said shells.

'lhe means for moving theseveral dies toward and away from each other preferably consists of a non-revoluble screw 251, ext-ending through the bearing S of the standard 1, a threaded sleeve 30, journaled in the bearing S, a gear 31, keyed to the sleeve 30, and a revoluble'shat't 32, having one end jourualed in the bearingl) and provided with apinion 33 and its other end journaled in a suitable' hanger 34 and provided with a tight pulley 35 and loose pulleys 3G 37, arranged at the opposite sidesof the tightV pulley 35. The screw 2l) is fixed at. one end to one of the dies, as the adjacent end die, by suitable fastening means, as a set-screw 8.v 'lhe opposite end of the Screw is passed throught he revel uble sleeve 30 beyond tite outer face of the gear i and is eugaged by threads of said revoiuble sleeve for moving the screw endwise, and thereby forcing the dies 11 toward 'and away t'rom each other. The gear 3l is keyed or otherwise Secured to the outer end ot' the sleeve ESO and meshes with the pinion 33 on the shaft 32, which in turttis driven by the tight pulley 35. The belt (notillnst-rated) is shifted from either of the loose pulleys 36 37. Then either of the belts (not illustrated) is shifted from either ofthe pulleys 3G 37, one of the belts referred to, as the one driving thel loose pulley 36, is a vstraight beltand may be shifted to the tight pulley 35 for rotating the shaft 232 in one direction, a-nd the belt normally driving the pulley 37 is a cross-belt, as is indicated by the dotted lines in Fig. 2, which may be shifted to said tight pulley 35 for driving the shaft; '32 inthe opposite direction.

In the operation of our invention the dies Hare normally separated to their extremo limit, regulated by links The wood or pulp blanks are then inserted between the adjacent faces of the several dies and are supported upon and centered by the bars 27. The gear 3l is then rotated by the pinion 333, thereby rotating the sleeve 30 and moving the screw and the dies endwise toward each other for compressing the blanks between said dies and forming the same ot' 'substantially tho IOS IIS

xo Walls of the Several dies uniformly for the purpose ot' drying the several plates before being released. After successively passing' through the chambers of all of the dies the steam is discharged through the conduit- 2o,

x 5 which may be connected to a suitable drip.

(Not illustrated.) \`\"hen the plates between the severa-l d are sutiiciently dry, the sleeve 30 is rotated iu the opposite direction, thereby sepa rating the dies from each ot her, wherezo upon the plates maybe readily removedand the operation repeated.

The operation of our invention will now be readily understood upon reference to the foregoing description and the accompanyiner 25' drawings, and while the described construction, cannbination, and arrangement of the component parts of this device are pal Lularly simple and efficient in operation it will be understood that considerable change may 3o be made in the construction wit-hout departing from the spirit of this invention, and therefore we do not limit ourselves to the precise construction shown and described.

W'e claiml. in a machine t'or forming plates, the com- 'bination ofasupporting-framehavingaguide- -rail com posed of sepa rable sections, one being,y removable t'rom the other, and a plurality of dies movable lengthwise of the guide-rail and 4o having portions'thereof interposed between said sections.

lu a machine for formingplates, the combination ot a supporting-frame havingr oppositely-arrangcd grooves, one of the walls of 45 onc of` the grooves being removable, and a plurality of dies supported by the walls of the grooves and movable lengthwise thereof.

3. In a machine for forming,` plates, the combination of parallel guide-rails havinglength- 5o wise grooves one of the guide-rails having a removable section forming one of the Walls; of its lengthwise groove, and a plurality of d ies movable lengthwise ofthe guide-rails and havinpr portions thereof projecting into said 6o towardand away from the other, and a flexihle cond uit. connecting said chambers.

A machine for forming plates, comprising a supporting-frame, dies mounted on the frame and each provided with a heating-chamo5 ber, an inlet-conduit connect-ed to one ot the chambers, an outlet-conduit connected to the other chamber, and a lloxible conduit connecting said chambers with cach other.

t. A machine for forming plates, comprising a supporting-framc having separated guide-rails, a plurality of dies mounted on said guide-rails one in advance of the other and movable lengthwise thereof, each of said dies beint.r provided with a heating-chamber and branch inlet and outlet passages, an inlet-comluit connected to the inlet-passage of one of the end dies, an outlet-conduit connected to the outlet-passage of the other end dic, and a plurality ot llexible conduits connectiug,r the chambers o't' said dies with each other.

7. In a machine for forming plates, the combination of a support ing-frame, a plurality of hollow dies mounted on the frame one in ad- 'away from eachother, and a plurality of tlexible conduits each having its opposite ends communicatiire,r with the interior of adjacent dies.

8. In a machine for forming plates, the combination of a supporting-frame having parallel guiderails provided with lengthwise grooves, one of thc guide-rails having a removable section forming one ofthe wails of the groove, a plurality of hollow dies supported one in advanceof the other in said grooves and movable toward and away from each other, flexible cond nits connecting the internal chambers ot' adjacentdies, and additional conduits cmnmunicatimr with the internal 'chambers of thel end dies.

.l. In a machine t'or forming,r plates, the combination of a supporting-lrame, a plurality ot' dies mounted ou the frame and movable toward and away from each other, means for tnovino` one ot' the dies, and additional means connecting the remaining' dies to said one of the dies t'or transmitting motion thereto and for limiting the separation of the dies ono away from the remaining,r dies.

l0. In a machine for forming plates, the combination of a supporting-frame, a plurality of dies mounted on the frame and movable toward and away from each other, means connected to one ot the end'dies for moving the same, and links connecting the several dies with each other for moving the other dies and limiting,r their separation one from the other as said end die is moved away from the remaining dies.

-ll In a machine for forming plates, the combination of a supporting-frame having separated substantially-parallel guide-rails provided with lengthwise grooves, one ofthe guide-rails having a removable section forming one of the walls of the groove, a plurality of diets supported one iu advance of the other in said grooves and movable toward and away from each other, meanstor actuating one of the dies, and links connecting the several dies with cach other for transmitting motion to the vance of the other and movable toward andl from the other as said one of the dies is moved IOC other dies and limiting,r their separation one from the other as said end die is moved away from the other die.'-

12. In a machine for foi-mim:r plates, the combination of a supporting-frame having Separated substantially-parallel guide-rails provided with lengthwise grooves, one ofthe .guide-rails having a removable section torm-4 ,iug one of the wallsof the groove, a plurality of hollow dies supported one in ad Vance of the other in said grooves and movable toward and away from each other, me hns for actuating one of the end dios, links e -nnectingthe several dies with each other foi-transmitting motion to the other dies and limiting their .separation one from the other as said end die is moved away from the remaining dies, dexibie conduite connecting the internal chambers of adjacent dies, and additional conduits communicating with the internal chambere` of the end dies.

13. In a machine for forming plates, the combination of a supportingz-frame, a plurality of hollow dies mounted on the trame and movable toward and away from each other, flexible conduits connectingr the internal chambers of the dies with each other, a screw fixed to one of the dies, a threaded rcvoluble sleeve journaled on the frame and engaged with the screw, and means for revolving the sleeve.

14. In a machine for forming plates.,rthe combination of a supportingrame, a plural ity of dies mounted on the frame and movable toward and away from each other, a screw fixed to one of the end dies, linka conmeeting the remainiinr dies' with each other and with said end die, a threaded sleevejonrnaled in the 'Qrame and engaged with the screw, a gear xed to the sleeve, and means for revolving the gear in opposite directions.

1.5. .fx machine for forming plates, compris- 'ing a supporting-frame havingr parallel guiderails provided with lengthwise grooves, one

of the rails havinga removable section forminl,r one of the walls ot' the groove, hollow dies guided in said grooves and movable toward' and away from each other, an inletoonduit communicating with the interior of one of the end dies, an outlet-conduit communieatil'xg with the interior ot theothereud die, flexible conduits having.,T their oppoeite ends communicating with the interioreI of adjacent dies for formilngY a continuous helical conduit through the il ies from one end die to the other4v a screw secured to one of the end dies, links connecting the remainingdiess with each other and with the die to which the Screw issecured, a revoluble thremied sleeve journaled on the frame and engaged with the screw,an1l means for rotating;r the sleeve in omjiosile directions.

lo. In a machine for forming plates, the combination of a supporting` frame, dies mounted on the frame and movable toward and away from each other, centering-bars for supporting the plates in aliuementwith the dies, and means for moving the diesin oppo- A site directions.

17. In a machine for forming,r plates, the combination of a supportiLig-frame, hollow dien mounted on the frame and movable toward and away from each other, separated substantially-parallel bars supported beneath the dies and arranged in planes substantially equidistant on opposite sides of a vertical plane through the centers of the dier., for cem tering the plates with the dies, menue connected to one of the dies for moving,r the same in opposite directions, and linke connecting' the remaining; dies to each other and to `eaid one of the dies.

In witness whereof we have hereunto Het i our hande this 31st day of May, i900.

RGBERT G. l'lOLl-ROOK. ROBERT H. KING. Tito enses:

L. W. BAKER, THOMAS L. ivtoKay. 

